Helga G. Pataki
Helga Geraldine Pataki is a fictional character in the Nickelodeon animated television series Hey Arnold!. She is voiced by Francesca Marie Smith.T. Mike Childs, The Rocklopedia Fakebandica (Macmillan, 2004), 133. Name Helga's second name "Geraldine" is a tribute to former Nickelodeon executive Geraldine Laybourne and has never been mentioned on the show except by her initial. In the series, Helga's sister is named Olga. The names Olga and Helga are variants (respectively, Russian and German) of the same name. Thus Saint Olga, a princess of Kievan Rus, was called "Olga" by her Slavic subjects and "Helga" by Varangian ones. Her surname, Pataki is originally a Hungarian surname, see for example the former New York governor, George Pataki. Personality Helga is something of a tomboy, as evidenced by her interest in playing contact sports alongside her male classmates, blatant lack of femininity, and disregard, to near dislike, for stereotypical female behavior, as seen in the episode "Helga's Makeover". She can also be very cynical and bossy, bullying her fourth-grade classmates with an iron fist, and often taking advantage of her best friend, Phoebe. However, Helga also has a much softer side, which becomes apparent mostly when she is alone and in her school work. She is heavily emotional, and as such, able to comprehend spectrum emotions such as love and hate. This emotional extremity is a running joke throughout the series; although Helga is seen as a "tough girl" by her classmates, she is frequently the first to go into hysterics in times of crisis. Helga is extremely intelligent. In the episode "The Aptitude Test", in which the class takes a standardized exam, it is eventually revealed that she achieved a perfect score on the test and the most outstanding result since her perfectionist sister, Olga Pataki, took the test. Presumably, however, the types of grades she receives on an average basis in school vary from low to high — in the episode "Quantity Time," Helga tells her parents that she failed another math test at school, though in "A Day In The Life Of A Classroom", her teacher Mr. Simmons encourages Helga to help Harold because she received excellent scores on the past two math exams. Her bad grades are most likely caused by her lack of motivation, attention, and academic concern. Helga appears to excel academically in literature classes, as evidenced by Mr. Simmons's constant praise of her literary work though always withholds her name possibly out of respect as she gets embarrassed from when he reads them aloud. Helga displays a remarkable gift for poetry, creating dramatic soliloquies expressing a situation or feeling with a generous use of vocabulary, especially for someone her age. These instances were more simple in the earlier episodes, but as the series progressed, grew in their intensity. Aside from poetry, Helga exhibits further aspects of cultural experience, being able to identify the work of Edward Hopper and make reference to George Orwell's 1984 in "Helga on the Couch". Helga's catch word is "criminy" (she apparently picked it from her father). Relationships With Peers Helga is regarded by most of her peers as a bully. She makes rude remarks and does not hesitate to use or threaten physical force to get her way, which intimidates many of her classmates. She even gave her fists names: Ol' Betsy and the Five Avengers. Arnold Helga is secretly in love with Arnold, despite the fact that she is constantly teasing him and calling him names (usually 'Football Head', in reference to his rather oddly shaped head). Various episodes have her going to the extreme to prevent her secret from being exposed. One such example is the episode "Helga Blabs it All" in which, under the influence of nitrous oxide (laughing gas) from a dental filling, she leaves a love declaration on Arnold’s answering machine. After beating up and taking the clothes of a “Campfire Lass” (equivalent to Girl Scouts of the USA), she pretends to be selling cookies in order to gain entry to Arnold's house and steal the tape before he can hear it. In one of the show's most noteworthy episodes, "Helga on the Couch", she actually discusses her obsession with the school psychiatrist. Herein it is revealed her limerence towards Arnold is the result of transference; where her family relationships were weak, Helga subsequently transferred all feelings of love towards the one person who fulfilled her idea of care, Arnold. This is revealed by a flashback in which during Helga's first day of pre-school, her family seemed to completely ignore her existence, forcing her to make the trek to school alone in the rain and mud. Upon arriving at school, it is Arnold who offers her a helping hand as well as gives her his snack time crackers when Harold took hers, and true kindness. Helga confesses her love after being caught helping Arnold, by Arnold, in Hey Arnold!: The Movie though the two both agree afterward that it was in the heat of the moment. It is also sometimes hinted in the series Arnold has strong feelings for Helga. Events in episodes like "Married", with Arnold's nightmare of married life climaxing with a heartfelt attempt by the dream Helga to express her love, also implies he has as much trouble as Helga has coming to terms with how deep his feelings are. The show's producer, Craig Bartlett, revealed during an Internet chat that had the second movie, The Jungle Movie (which was planned but never produced), been made, Arnold would have realized he and Helga were meant for each other, and finally reciprocated her feelings. Although Helga has acknowledged her feelings regarding Arnold, she opts to keep them private by publicly denying and rejecting Arnold through displays of verbal abuse. It is suggested in various episodes that Helga treats Arnold as such due to her fear that revealing her true feelings would cause her embarrassment and humiliation. In "Helga On The Couch," Helga also expresses her fear of being rejected by Arnold. Brainy In contrast to Helga's feelings towards Arnold, she is almost always followed by Brainy in each episode, where he is right behind her, breathing very hard (usually after one of Helga's emotional monologues). Though it's apparent that he is in love with Helga, she never returns the feelings as mutual; on scant occasions, she has kissed him due to something going right for her. Usually every encounter with Brainy has Helga punching him between the eyes, which became a running gag for the series — indeed, in one episode in which Helga believed she had lost contact with her emotions and simply responded casually to Brainy and left, he became nervous and ended up punching himself. Lila Sawyer Helga is very jealous of Lila Sawyer, who is the object of Arnold's affections in season 3's "Arnold & Lila" and onwards. Unlike Helga, Lila displays indiscriminating compassion, wit, and stylishness — all qualities Helga outwardly lacks. The two do not get along very well from Helga's perspective. Helga's jealousy of Lila worsens when Olga "adopts" Lila in a "big sisters" program in the episode "Big Sis". However, she was able to figure out that Helga was in love with Arnold during the play of Romeo & Juliet, where she noticed Helga desperately wanted to play Juliet when Arnold was selected to play Romeo. She gets Helga to confess to her of this feelings, which she does, and allows her to take her place as Juliet (which leads Helga to take full advantage of the death kiss scene, kissing him for a full minute). She also helped Helga act more kind towards others, though disregarded this advice after Arnold accidentally called her Lila. Phoebe Heyerdahl Phoebe Heyerdahl is Helga's best friend. The conflict between Phoebe's quieter, less demanding personality and Helga's more aggressive one occasionally emerges in episodes such as "Hall Monitor", "Pre-Teen Scream", and "Phoebe Breaks a Leg". Phoebe often follows Helga around, taking down notes and appearing more as an assistant rather than a friend to Helga. However, the two do care about each other, as they listen to each other's concerns and help each other out. Phoebe knows about Helga's love for Arnold and is understanding of Helga's rocky relationship with her family. A running gag throughout the series is when Helga says something embarrassing, she orders Phoebe to forget what she just said, which leads Phoebe to cheerfully state "forgetting". Appearance Like the other characters on the show, Helga's attire rarely changes: she usually wears a pink dress over a white shirt and a large pink bow in her hair. She has bright, blonde hair, which she wears in long pigtails without any visible hair ties, and a black unibrow. She has made some appearances in other outfits, though: throughout the show's run, she has dressed up as a French girl, a hall monitor, a sophisticated lady, and others (see Screenshots section). In the pilot and clay animation shorts, Helga's outfit consists of a dark pink dress with sleeves and a white collar. The color of Helga's eyes has never been mentioned in the show. But in the episode "Married", Arnold says this about Helga's eyes: "Your eyes are like two diamonds, shining brightly at mist of sky of pale blue heaven." Family Helga has a very dysfunctional family that does not pay attention to her. It is heavily suggested that Helga's home situation is the root cause of her anti-social behavior. For a brief period, a spin-off series called The Patakis was planned. The premise was a continuation of Helga's life into her teenage years with a joint focus on her family. Nickelodeon decided that the idea was too "dark" for the network. MTV considered the show, but ultimately decided that it was too similar to their own production Daria. The Unofficial Rugrats Online, Nicktoons Rejects. Robert "Big Bob" Pataki Her father, a successful pager salesman, rarely notices her existence, favoring her over-achieving, neurotic college-aged sister Olga, whom Helga rarely gets along with. Helga refers to him as "Bob" or "Big Bob", indicating she does not really see him as her father. Big Bob does pay more attention to Helga when city contests occur, but only to serve his own competitiveness or to encourage Helga to become a copy of Olga. In "Spelling Bee", Big Bob has much pride in his family name, pushing Helga to win the trophy that belongs to all of the Patakis. In most episodes, Big Bob will prefer to watch television over listening to Helga, absent-mindedly calling her "Olga" instead. Although Big Bob is far more boorish in personality, he and Helga share some similarities that occasionally bond them. Both enjoy wrestling, ridiculing melodramatic theater, bullying, and eating. They also share similar speaking patterns, though Helga possesses a better command of language. Helga is deeply resentful of Big Bob's excessive attention to Olga. Miriam Pataki Her mother, Miriam, often gives off hints of being an alcoholic: by being depressed, forgetful, struggling to stay conscious, and frequently drinking "smoothies" and "coffee". Helga also refers to her mother as "Miriam" and relates poorly to her. Though apathetic at home, it is suggested in multiple episodes that Miriam is capable, but stunted by her marriage to an overbearing Big Bob Pataki. In "Olga Gets Engaged", Miriam advises Olga not to make the same marital mistake she did, and in "Road Trip", Miriam reveals that she used to be a rodeo queen. Miriam's abilities are showcased in "The Beeper Queen", where she fills in for Big Bob at his Beeper Emporium when he must stay home due to a back injury. Miriam packs Helga an exceptionally nutritious lunch, shares stories and listens to Helga, and helps Helga with her homework — all implying that Miriam is held back by her unemployment and marriage to Big Bob, affecting Helga's own upbringing. Olga Pataki Olga and Helga do not relate to each other well, causing great conflict and resentment between the two (much of the resentment is exerted by Helga, for Olga doesn't seem to resent her little sister at all). Helga is jealous of Olga's image of perfection and the attention she receives from both Big Bob and Miriam. Olga is kind to Helga, but Helga does not respond to her kindness because she feels it is insincere, as Olga does not listen to Helga's more serious concerns about their family and relationship. Olga condescends to Helga, calling her "baby sister" and refusing to address the problems in their family. Trivia * In Angry Beaver animated series (episode "Dumbwaiters") the beavers once showed Helga Pataki's mask within a set of scary masks. * Every time Helga signs her name on something that outwardly states her feelings to Arnold, it always ends up in Arnold's hands, leading her to take extreme measures to get it back or destroy it. Appears in 24 Hours To Live, A Day In The Life Of A Classroom, April Fool's Day, Arnold & Lila, Arnold Betrays Iggy, Arnold Visits Arnie, Arnold's Christmas, Arnold's Halloween, Arnold's Hat, Arnold's Thanksgiving, Arnold's Valentine, Beaned, Best Man, Big Bob's Crisis, Big Caesar, Big Sis, Biosquare, Buses, Bikes, and Subways, Career Day, Coach Wittenberg, Cool Jerk, Cool Party, Crabby Author, Crush On Teacher, Curly Snaps, Curly's Girl, Dangerous Lumber, Das Subway, Deconstructing Arnold, Dinner for Four, Downtown As Fruits, Eating Contest, Egg Story, Eugene's Bike, Eugene's Birthday, Eugene's Pet, Eugene, Eugene!, False Alarm, Field Trip, Gerald's Secret, Gerald's Tonsils, Ghost Bride, Girl Trouble, Grand Prix, Grudge Match, Hall Monitor, Harold's Bar Mitzvah, Haunted Train, Heat, Helga vs. Big Patty, Helga And The Nanny, Helga Blabs It All, Helga On The Couch, Helga Sleepwalks, Helga's Boyfriend, Helga's Locket, Helga's Love Potion, Helga's Makeover, Helga's Masquerade, Helga's Parrot, Helga's Show, Hey Arnold!: The Movie, Hey Harold!, It Girl, Longest Monday, Love And Cheese, Magic Show, Married, Monkey Business, Monkeyman!, Ms. Perfect, Mudbowl, New Bully on the Block, New Teacher, Olga Comes Home, Olga Gets Engaged, Operation Ruthless, Parents Day, Part Time Friends, Phoebe Breaks A Leg, Phoebe Cheats, Phoebe Skips, Phoebe Takes the Fall, Phoebe's Little Problem, Pigeon Man, Pre-Teen Scream, Principal Simmons, Quantity Time, Rhonda Goes Broke, Rhonda's Glasses, Rich Kid, Road Trip, Roller Coaster, Roughin' It, Runaway Float, Sally's Comet, Save The Tree, School Dance, School Play, Sid And Germs, Snow, Spelling Bee, Stinky Goes Hollywood, Student Teacher, Summer Love, Teachers' Strike, The Aptitude Test, The Baseball, The Beeper Queen, The Big Scoop, The Flood, The High Life, The Journal, The Little Pink Book, The Pig War, The Sewer King, The Vacant Lot, Weird Cousin, What's Opera, Arnold?, Wheezin' Ed, World Records See also * Helga's poetry * Gallery of Helga's screenshots * How to draw Helga Pataki References External links * Alsace Solamo, "Toontime: Helga Geraldine Pataki," Sun Star Kidsters (March 11, 2007). * "Helga G. Pataki (and family)", a Hey Arnold! Character & Episode Guide. * Helga Geraldine Pataki's IMDb profile Category:Characters Category:Patakis Category:Arnold and his classmates Category:Helga